20% Shea, Vegan, Palm-Free, Watermelon Challenge

Setup 1. Prepare microwaveable containers, utensils, scale, thermometer, and stick blender. 2. Prepare mold. 3. Prepare setup for gelling. (Note: In cold weather climates during winter, it helps soap quality to have containers and the mold pre-warmed to gelling temperatures for the final mixing of colors and swirling in the mold.) 4. Prepare ALL ingredients. Measure/weigh all ingredients and set to one side of work area: Lye solution: Master Batched 50:50 water to NaOH solution, additional distilled water (keep separate, do not add to 50:50 MB yet), sodium lactate, sodium citrate, and sorbitol. Oils: GW 415 soywax, Shea butter, coconut oil, HO sunflower oil, and castor oil. Fragrance: Use polypropylene or glass container for fragrance oils because some plastics may melt. Colors: Blend each mica color at the rate needed for the batch with an equal amount of additional sunflower oil. (Example: 1 teaspoon mica powder to 1 teaspoon sunflower oil.) Oxides can also be used and blended with oil. Small amounts of sunflower oil will become additional super fat. Have containers ready to combine each color with required soap batter. Instructions Prepare the lye solution. The 50:50 (water:NaOH) should be in a polypropylene pitcher large enough to hold the additional water and additives. To the smaller container of distilled water, add sodium citrate and sorbitol. Stir until completely dissolved and clear. Add sodium lactate. Add this solution to the 50:50 lye solution and stir. Set prepared lye solution with additives aside. 2. Prepare oils. Put GW 415 soywax and Shea butter in a microwavable container. (I use a large polypropylene pitcher large enough to hold the entire batch of soap batter.) Microwave in short bursts. When most of the butter and soy wax has melted, I stir them until all of the remaining oils are melted. Check the temperature. Microwave again in short bursts until the temperature reaches 160°F. (Fahrenheit, NOT Celsius!) The oils will be completely transparent at this point. When Shea butter and soywax have reached 160° F, add coconut oil and stir until melted. Next stir in HO sunflower oil and castor oil. Adding these oils into the melted oils will bring the temperature down quickly. 3. Add fragrance to partially cooled oils. 4. Thoroughly blend oils and fragrance. This is when I use my stick blender in the belief it helps keep fatty acid molecules homogenized as the oils cool further, preventing stearic spots. I blend at high speed then stop. I set the stick blender aside and wait for all of the air bubbles to completely disappear. 5. Monitor temperatures When the lye solution and oils are between 100°F and 110°F, proceed to the next step. Make Soap! Combine lye and oils Using a whisk, stir the oils with one hand while slowly pouring lye solution into the oils. 2. Continue to stir by hand Use a whisk to continue stirring the soap batter in a back-and-forth motion until it reaches emulsion, which is when the oils and lye solution stay blended, but before it reaches light trace. When it reaches stable emulsion, proceed quickly to the next step. 3. Pour batter into containers for coloring Combine batter and colors. Ensure that all containers of batter have reached light trace. If needed, use a whisk and stir each container until it reaches light trace. Soaps poured at emulsion and before trace may develop heavy soda ash within the sides of the mold and on top. 4. Proceed to pour soap batter into the mold as required for the design method. 5. Cover soap mold and proceed to gel. I gel my soap at roughly 120°F for eight hours, then take it out to cool down to room temperature. At room temperature, my soap is typically ready to remove from the mold. Time to putting soap better into the mold and unmolding is typically less than 24 hours.